Today, NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced the signing of an historic agreement to coordinate standards for transporting both government and non-government astronauts to and from space. The two agencies will provide a stable framework for the U.S. space industry, avoid conflicting requirements and multiple sets of standards, and advance both public and crew safety. Today marks an important step towards the success of the new public-private partnership model that is the future of America’s space industry.

“This agreement is the next step in bringing the business of launching Americans back to American soil,” Charles Bolden, NASA administrator said. “We are fostering private sector innovation while maintaining high standards of safety and reliability to re-establish U.S.-crewed access to low-Earth orbit, in-sourcing work to American companies and encouraging the development of dynamic and cost-effective spaceflight capabilities built to last.”